Knifeplay (skill)

Revision as of 02:01, 16 November 2011 by Vashir (talk | contribs) (added skill ranks)

Knifeplay

Knifeplay is the art of combat using agility and a sitara. A sitara is a blade finely crafted from the bones of a fallen foe, using the strength of that victim as a foundation for the characteristic of the weapon. An Idras learns how to manipulate the sitara in both defensive and offensive maneuvers, thus becoming a deadly opponent.

Stances

The art of Qa-Sital is a difficult one, and much different from swordplay. The most important concept you must grasp is the interaction of stances and Knifeplay moves.

Each stance is a combination of physical posture and mental state. The Laesan stance is defensive in nature, and so an Abhaen in that stance is better positioned and better prepared for defence.

Each Knifeplay move can only be done from certain stances, and will cause you change stance. For example, lateral slash can be done from the Vae-Sant stance, leaving you in Ein-Fasit. Vertical slash can be done from Ein-Fasit, returning you to Vae-Sant. By choosing your moves wisely, you can flow between stances without ever being forced to stop attacking and change stance.

Abhaen combat is based on combinations of Qa-sital attacks. Many apprentices will begin with the brace form, allowing them to perform two attacks in rapid succession. An attack can be defined as a Qa-Sital strike or a change of stance. With further training in Qa-sital, you will soon learn to strike in triplets, allowing three attacks. Those few who master the Qa-Sital when provoked will be able to strike in a devastating quartet.

Start in the Ein-Fasit stance and perform vertical then lateral slashes. You will finish back in the Ein-Fasit stance, ready to repeat as soon as you regain balance.

            Vertical              Lateral
 Ein-Fasit ----------> Vae-Sant  ----------> Ein-Fasit

You may equally well choose to start in the Vae-Sant stance.

            Lateral               Vertical
 Vae-Sant  ----------> Ein-Fasit ----------> Vae-Sant

Alternately, lacking a sitara, you may use the swiftkick move instead. The stance flow for this move is an alternation between Ein-Fasit and Vae-Sant, like so:

            Swiftkick              Swiftkick
 Ein-Fasit ---------->  Vae-Sant  ----------> Ein-Fasit

Begining from Vae-Sant is also possible, and it would be the same combination of two swiftkicks.

Stance Chart

 --------------------------------------------------
| Move        | x | ? | Stances                    |
|--------------------------------------------------|
| Bleed       | E |   | G -> L -> V -> R -> E      |
| Butterfly   | G |   | E -> L -> R -> G, V - > G  |
| Crescentcut | V | * | R -> L -> V, G <-> E       |
| Feint       | R | * | V -> L -> E <-> G          |
| Flashkick   | R | * | G -> R, E -> L <-> V       |
| Gouge       | L | * | G -> E -> R -> V -> G      |
| Jab         | R | * | L -> G <-> V, E -> G       |
| Lateral     | L |   | G -> V -> E -> L, R -> E   |
| Lowhook     | R | * | L -> G <-> V, E -> G       |
| Pinprick    | E | * | L -> G -> R <-> V          |
| Raze        | V |   | G -> L -> E -> R -> V      |
| Slit        | N | * | R -> G -> E -> L -> V -> E |
| Spinslah    | E |   | G -> V -> E, R -> L -> E   |
| Swiftkick   | R | * | G -> L -> R, V <-> E       |
| Trip        | V |   | L -> R -> G -> V, E -> G   |
| Vertical    | L |   | R -> E -> V -> L, G -> L   |
 --------------------------------------------------

 --------------------------------------------
| KEY                                        |
|--------------------------------------------|
| x - Stance from which move is impossible   |
| ? - Whether move can be repeated by itself |
| N - No stance                              |
| G - Gyanis                                 |
| V - Vae-Sant                               |
| R - Rizet                                  |
| E - Ein-Fasit                              |
| L - Laesan                                 |
 --------------------------------------------

Sitaras

Before carving a sitara, a bone must be cleaned and dried. Be warned that both the preparation and carving steps can take quite a bit of undisturbed time.

Colour    Advantage
--------------------------------
Black     %50 Unblockable damage
Grey      Psychic damage
Clear     Asphyxiation damage
Yellow    Electrical damage
Red       Fire damage
Green     Poison damage
Blue      Cold damage

Skill Table

Name Rank Percent Description
Knifecrafting Inept 0 The art of the true Predators.
Stances Inept 50 Smoothly shift between the knifeplay stances.
Lateral Novice 0 The basic slash.
Ambidexterity Novice 33 Two hands are better than one.
Vertical Novice 66 A more powerful slash.
Brace Apprentice 0 Combine two attacks at once.
Swiftkick Apprentice 12 A swift and accurate kick.
Parry Apprentice 33 The ability to parry attacks.
Gouge Apprentice 66 A disfiguring slash.
Jab Capable 0 A piercing blow to the arms.
Feint Capable 33 Fake out your opponent.
Pinprick Capable 66 Effectively disarm your foe.
Raze Adept 0 Attack the defences that would keep your sitara away.
Bleed Adept 33 Drain the blood of your foe.
Flashkick Adept 66 A blow to leave them reeling.
Crescentcut Skilled 0 An attack of brute force.
Triplet Skilled 33 Attack with three hits.
Lowhook Skilled 66 Spin low to render legs useless.
Slit Gifted 0 Cut the throat of a helpless victim.
Pommelwhip Gifted 33 They're easier to handle unconscious.
Envenom Gifted 50 Coat your sitara in toxins.
Trip Gifted 66 An effective method of bringing him down.
Takedown Gifted 83 Knock them down from their high horse.
Spacing Expert 0 Keep yourself beyond arm's length.
Freefall Expert 33 The blade from above strikes true.
Notching Expert 66 A crafting skill to enhance your knife.
Edgehook Virtuoso 0 Catch your enemy's blade.
Backstab Virtuoso 25 Attack from the shadows.
Cover Virtuoso 50 Defend your comrades in battle.
WolfCharge Virtuoso 66 Quickly dismount for hand to hand combat.
Spinslash Virtuoso 75 A powerful double-cut.
Circle Fabled 0 Move like water, cut like steel.
Knifethrowing Fabled 25 Fling your blade like a projectile.
Trueparry Fabled 50 Your blade makes you impervious.
Prowess Fabled 75 Keep a look-out for openings.
Bloodscourge Mythical 0 Your own essence is as good a poison as any.
Butterfly Mythical 25 A whipping acrobatic attack.
Triad Mythical 50 Dispatch thrice as many.
Tidalslash Mythical 75 Use your enemy's magick against him.
Bladesurge Transcendent 0 The spirit of the fighter fully realised.